Why did House Republicans just vote against expanded child tax credits?

This week, hundreds of thousands of Arizona families will feel some much-needed relief as the second round of monthly Child Tax Credit payments hit bank accounts and mailboxes across the state.

The initiative — which is expected to lift 112,000 Arizona children out of poverty — is the largest federal anti-poverty initiative in decades.

The only downside to this historic middle-class tax cut: Not a single Republican voted for it.

Thanks to President Biden’s American Rescue Plan, the families of 1.5 million Arizona children will receive monthly payments of up to $300 per child through the end of this year.

Being a parent is expensive, and the pandemic has made it even more difficult for Arizona families to make ends meet every month.

In fact, over one-third of Arizona adults reported having difficulty covering household expenses because of the pandemic.

These monthly payments to families with children will go a long way to help parents pay the bills, afford child care, and put food on the table.

Growing up in the Valley and raised by a single mom, I watched as my mother worked tirelessly day after day to make ends meet.

I know first-hand how just a little bit of help every month can go a long way to families in our community who struggle to make ends meet. When I was a kid, this monthly tax relief would have been a godsend to my mom as she raised my brother and me by herself, and I’m so appreciative that President Biden delivered for other Arizona families.

I’m of the opinion that cutting child poverty in half should not be a partisan issue.

I strongly believe that every working family in Arizona should have the ability to meet the cost of raising the next generation with the security and dignity they deserve.

My time leading the Booker T. Washington Child Development Center, one of the longest-running Head Start programs in Arizona, has taught me that our children are our greatest assets and most important investments.

Studies show that children whose families get more in refundable tax credits do better in school, are more likely to graduate high school and attend college, and make more money as adults.

Even more than that: Investing in our children is the right thing to do. Clearly, this is where Rep. David Schweikert and I fundamentally disagree because he had the gall — and quite frankly the bad judgment — to vote against the interests of Arizona families.

This is just the latest of his ten years of poor decisions that consistently put Arizona’s families on the back burner so that he can create an economy that only works for the top one percent.

Time and time again, Schweikert has voted against the interests of our community to please his large corporate donors, political party bosses and wealthy friends.

By supporting the 2017 Trump tax bill, Schweikert voted to deliver a massive tax break to wealthy corporations, while raising taxes on middle-class families and increasing insurance premiums.

The bottom line: Schweikert has left behind Arizona’s working families and his attempt to block the child tax credit payments was just the latest example of his failure to serve his constituents.

Voters won’t forget that in 2022.

Editor's note: Democrat Jevin Hodge is president of the Booker T. Washington Child Development Center and a candidate for the U.S. House of Representatives representing Arizona’s Congressional District 6.